Zahra Hirji of Discovery News, presents a brief analysis on the hot subject which has been discussed for some time. Is the “ancient civilization in Amazonian forests” story, an “incredible cover-up of Mother Nature” as Hirji herself stated on the title of the article, or rather an exaggerated speculation that grew in some archaeologists’ minds? Augusto Oyuela Caycedo from University of Florida believes a past existence of a complex society in the depths of the rain forests. Many anthropologists support this view after researching the environment and examining the evidence. On the other hand, conservatives seem reluctant to be convinced. As Hirji stated, it appears as a controversy between the “old way of thinking” and the “new wave of thought”. A good read.

Is this a case of a Spaniard painting pretty pictures to pocket more money for future conquests, or an example of a perfectly executed cover-up directed by Mother Nature herself?

The Washington Post recently reported on the work of Augusto Oyuela-Caycedo of the University of Florida, who is part of a growing number of anthropologists who believe an ancient, advanced society once occupied Amazonia.

Though Oyuela-Caycedo and others do not necessarily take Carvajal at his word, they do believe that subtle soil disturbances in the Amazon landscape prove the past existence of a complex society — potentially even the one Carvajal claims he encountered.

Evidence for a past civilization is subtle — so subtle that it can easily be mistaken for nature. For example, proponents of the ancient Amazon society theory rely heavily on the wide distribution of terra preta sites; pieces of land with fertile soil. Initially, researchers thought terra preta formed from volcanic ash deposits or old swampland.

“But as terra preta was studied more in-depth by scholars from multiple disciplines, it was found to be the result of permanent human occupation of a site, an accumulation of organic matter, low-temperature burning charcoal and ash from fires,” Oyuela-Caycedo told Discovery News.

Another line of evidence is the pattern of vegetation in the Amazon. Researchers, “recognized a pattern of clusterings of many fruit trees at archaeological and surrounding areas, which suggest that people have been enriching the forest with desirable species for a long time,” Oyuela-Caycedo said. “Now we are beginning to recognize that anomalous concentrations of economic plant species in the forest are most likely due to human actions.”

Critics of the theory, like Betty Meggers, a researcher at the Smithsonian Institution, remain unconvinced. Even if these pieces of evidence prove people once lived in the forest, she does not believe that this necessarily equates to a complex civilization, one comprised of many millions of people.

If they existed, where did all the people go? And why is it that the only current residents of the forest are small, nomadic tribes?

Oyuela-Caycedo and others believe that this society, like other indigenous groups of South America, were killed by diseases brought over by Europeans, including Spaniards like Carvajal.

Both sides remain steadfast in their ideas. Meggers represents the old way of thinking, and Oyuela-Caycedo touts the new wave of thought.